Ransoms and Revelations
by Mayhem N. Jeans
Summary: Corso goes to help a ship in distress, but things get hectic, and he's taken ransom. It's up to Tresse to finally face her past in order to save her poor Farm Boy. *Some sensual references, but it's all in good humor*
1. Chapter 1

Corso followed his captain Tresse Finn through the hectic market place. She was easy enough to keep an eye on, with her tall figure and shaved head, plus there was a certain swagger in her walk that made everyone move out of her way. They were in yet another busy space port; he wasn't even sure what the name of this one was. Tresse had a shipment of flash-frozen slugs that she was more than eager to get rid of and was going to try to get an extra 3 percent since one of the cases leaked slug juice all over her cargo hold. Corso was the one who had to clean it up. He wasn't sure if he would ever be able to get the fishy smell out of the hold, much less his clothes.

When Tresse reached the market stall where she was supposed to haggle the deal, Corso couldn't help but wander off a bit. A couple stalls down was a strange looking vendor. He tried not to stare at the ancient woman sitting cross legged on a stack of pillows, her tiny face dwarfed by huge gold hoop earrings. A wave of spicy incense flowed out of the stall, nearly bowling Corso over. It was some sort of gypsy vendor, he decided.

"You there, boy."

The old woman had spotted him staring and was calling out to him. Panicking, he pretended not to notice her, but she was not fooled.

"I see you there. Come here and talk a moment. Fancy a fortune?"

A fortune? Corso glanced at Tresse. She was still arguing with the Twi'lek vendor. It was still going to be a while, he guessed, so he shrugged and went up to the stall. He had a few stacks of credits in his pocket, his personal earnings from his and Tresse's jobs. The woman grinned toothlessly at him as he sat down on the cushion across from her. The smell of incense was even stronger in the stall.

"Ma'am." He greeted her, unsure of what proper protocol would be. He rubbed his sweaty palms on his pants, suddenly self-conscious of how large he was compared to the gypsy. She pulled another piece of incense from behind her, lit it, and then set it between her and Corso like a miniature campfire.

"You have a good build, boy. You grew up on a farm." It wasn't a question- she was just stating the fact. He nodded, wondering how she had derived that. "You also have seen many terrible things. Violence, blood, war. You have lost many who were close to you."

The smell of incense and flashbacks of that night hit Corso like a freight train. Images of his father's home, the door torn off the hinges, the smoke and blood, rushed over him. He tried to brace himself, but he still flinched. Maybe this was a bad idea after all.

"But that is behind you." She continued, her voice was distant as if she was speaking from kilometers away, "Now you travel the stars, searching for a new life. For something that will make you feel whole again." The gypsy watched him, smirking at his awed expression.

"How did you figure that?" He asked, but she shook her head, raising her hand to silence him.

"Hush, boy, one cannot explain how to understand the power of the past, present, and future. I have told you your past and your present. Do you wish to hear of the future?"

He nodded eagerly.

"Good. Give me your hand." He pulled his glove off and reached his hand over to her. She held it, his palm facing up, and studied. Her grip was like papier-mâché, dry and fragile. Moments passed as she studied it, her already wrinkled brow creased with concern. His stomach twisted. What if she found something bad in his future?

Finally, after what felt like forever, she let go of his hand. "You have quite the path before you, young man. Many dangers will be faced before you. You will meet new allies, but also new enemies. You- and your friends- are going to face greater challenges than any other." The gypsy closed her eyes, "A storm is coming to the galaxy, brewing as we speak. I have long foreseen it. But this is the first time I have ever seen hope. You have a greater destiny before you than you can imagine."

"That's nifty."

Corso and the gypsy turned around to see Tresse standing behind them, an amused smirk on her face, "I wondered where you wandered off to, Farm Boy." She glanced at the old woman with slight disdain, "Pay her so we can go before she scams you from _all_ your credits."

The woman paid no heed to Tresse's insults, but Corso sheepishly pulled credits from his pocket. "How much do I owe you?" He asked, but she shook her head.

"Save the galaxy as the fates have foretold, young man, and you owe me nothing."

"How generous." Tresse commented as Corso stood up. He gave the woman an apologetic look. Tresse was usually skeptical of 'magic', but she wasn't normally this bitter. She probably wasn't able to get compensation for the slug spill, "C'mon."

"You have the looks of a scoundrel." The woman called out as Tresse walked away, "But I can see that you have the blood of nobility. Tell us, princess, why did you forsake your family and your world?"

Tresse froze suddenly, making Corso nearly run into her. She whirled around at the woman; her blue eyes alight with fire. She pointed, her mouth open and ready to argue, but she lowered her hand. "You're wrong there, lady. I am as far from '_noble'_ as it goes." Then she curtly turned on her heel and marched away.

Corso finally managed to catch up with her, "Sorry, Captain. I was just curious about-"

Tresse rose her hand to hush him, "No worries. Those gypsies really know how to work up appeal, what with all those pillows and incense. Just realize that they'll say anything if they know you'll pay them." _But she wouldn't take my money_, Corso wanted to argue, but stayed quiet. "I'm hungry, let's get some chow."


	2. Chapter 2

Sitting down at a bench outside a greasy burger joint, Corso and Tresse ate their food.

"I know what you said about the gypsies lying just to get your money, but how did she know so much about me?" Corso asked.

Tresse swallowed her bite of burger, her lips shiny from the grease, "Easy- deduction. They look at you and 'read' you like a book. And you're especially easy to read. You're a pretty well-built guy, but you always have this look like a little kid who's never seen the galaxy before. So, she guessed you'd grown up working on a farm and were out for the first time. Everything else, she was making up on the fly, feeding off your cues and body language. Gypsies may be uneducated money mongers, but they really are smart."

Corso nodded, chewing thoughtfully on the burger. He still wasn't entirely convinced. The gypsy had been scarily accurate with her 'deduction' of him, and the whole spiel about the future of the galaxy and destiny had set him on edge.

"If you still aren't sure what to think, just realize," Tresse spoke through her food but paused to swallow, licking sauce off the corner of her mouth, "That she thought I was a noble. A princess, even. Obviously, she's cracked. There's nothing noble about me, not one bit." Tresse grinned. Corso was relieved that her mood had picked back up. Food, especially greasy fast food, always cheered her up.

"Ha, I'm not too sure about that, Captain." Corso chuckled. She stared at him, slowly chewing.

"What do you mean?" She asked him. "I'm honestly kind of a mess. Horrible manners, cocky swagger, questionable morals. Not to mention this." She pointed at her bald head. "Noble ladies usually have fabulous hair."

"Well, the one thing you _do_ have is really good posture." Corso answered, taking a sip from the fizzy drink he'd gotten. It burned his nose, but it had a pleasant fruity taste.

Tresse snorted, shaking her head, "Posture?"

"Yeah," Corso sat up perfectly straight, holding his chin up, "You stand so straight and tall." He exaggerated his own posture to imitate hers. "I can probably balance two books and a glass of water on top of your head."

She laughed at him, shaking her head in disbelief. "You could not!"

"Could too." He picked up his fizz cup and reached it over to place it on her head. She squirmed out of the way. "It was one of the first things I noticed about you." The words tumbled out of his mouth, sounding a lot more sentimental than he had intended, but Tresse shrugged it off.

"You're nuts, Farm Boy." She stood up, brushing the crumbs off of her pants. No matter how much she denied it, she did have incredible posture. Not graceful by any means, but definitely balanced. "That crummy sales guy wouldn't pay to have my cargo hold cleaned up, and he wouldn't take the spoilt crate, but he recommended some exotic cleaner to get the smell out. We better pick it up and then get on our way."

"Lead the way."


	3. Chapter 3

Corso sighed as he flopped down in his bunk. Sure, that cleaner had taken the smell of thawed slug juice out of the hold, but how was he gonna get the smell of the cleaner out? The cleaner didn't necessarily smell bad, but it was too strong. His head hurt from it. It still lingered around him, like a cloud of woodsy scented disinfectant. At least the slug smell was subtle. He needed a shower.

He sat up, his movement making another wave of the smell to hit him. After he told Tresse that things were cleaned up, he'd take a long shower and wash his clothes until the stench was long gone.

Tresse sat in the cockpit, her feet propped up on the dashboard. As Corso turned the corner, she whirled around, her nose wrinkling.

"Cripes, Corso." She exclaimed, covering her nose, "Did you take a kriffing bath in it? I could smell you coming down the hall."

He shrugged, "Yeah, it's a little strong."

"_A little strong_? That would make a gundark cry. Heck, it's making me cry. Get out of here, and go take a kriffing bath before I shove you in the airlock."

Corso laughed, "Okay, Captain." He left, but the smell lingered. Tresse groaned, feeling a head ache throb in her temples. Those kriffing slugs. She turned back around to look out the view port.

A few minutes later, the orange comm signal beside her ankle lit up. She looked at it and sighed. Orange comm signals meant that there was a ship in distress somewhere close by. Sitting up proper, she pulled up the map to see where it was coming from.

The ship was in the Devaros system, a couple parsecs away. She frowned. Devaros was a pretty sparse system. Not many passed through there, save for the occasional merchant. However, the real reason for that was the fact that pirates ruled that system. Not a good place to be stranded. Tresse triangulated the signal to get a reading on the ship. There was a slight chance that it was a trap set up by pirates.

_Plutus_ class.

Tresse froze as she looked at the reading. _Plutus_ class, which meant it was from Tomelac. And she knew what that meant. Something worse than pirates. However, she also knew that she couldn't leave them stranded. Plutus classes were sure to have tons of fine wealth on board, making it a prime target for pirates. But that didn't mean she wouldn't have to deal with them personally. Grabbing her comm, she hurried out of the cockpit to the living area.

She knocked her knuckles against the bathroom door, "Hey, Corso!" She yelled. She could hear him turning off the refresher water.

"What?" He called back.

"I'm coming in, I need you to do something!"

"What, no, Capt-"

She shoved the door open. Corso yelped, grabbing his towel and haphazardly wrapped it around his waist. Tresse paused and grinned deviously. "Hey there, Farm boy."

He furiously tightened his towel, "What the kriff, Captain? You shouldn't be in here, I'm not decent! What do you want?" His face was turning red, redder than she had ever seen it before, and he was cussing, which he never did around her. Obviously, she was embarrassing him.

She rolled her eyes, "Don't be such a prude. We've got an orange comm, and I need you to take care of it. Here," She handed the comm towards him, but he just stared at her.

"What? Can't you see I'm a little busy, Captain? Could you not take care of it or at least have waited a couple minutes for me to get dressed?"

"There's not time for that. It's a merchant ship stuck in pirate space. The longer we wait, the worse it could be. And I've dealt with this crowd before, and it's not an experience I'd like to replicate. Besides, I think it's time you should get some responsibility around here." She handed the comm to him again, "Just tell them we're on our way, and then you can fix yourself up all nice and pretty." Mouth agape, Corso took the comm, too stunned to really argue. "Oh, and keep my name out of it, please. It'll just make things all the more complicated if I get brought into this. Thanks, sweetie!" She gave him another once over up and down, just to further irritate him, then left the steamy shower room. The steam in the shower had made her cheeks flushed, and they stayed warm even as she navigated the ship to the coordinates.


	4. Chapter 4

Corso stood shocked for a moment after Tresse vanished. Sometimes he wondered if he would wind up throttling her one day. Even if she was a lady, she really could get him worked up with how arrogant she could be. Although, he wasn't sure if it was just the steam of the shower, but it almost looked like she was blushing, too. He shook his head and opened up the comm connection to the ship in distress.

"Hello, this is Duke Deradon of the _Libur_." A prim voice answered. "I thank you for responding to our call."

"Uh, yeah." Corso struggled to think of what else to say, "This is Corso Riggs of the Sphincter. My ship is passing by, so we figured we'd better take care of you. What seems to be the problem?"

"There's a slight malfunction in our engines. It's easily reparable I'm sure; however, we do not seem to have the proper tools to do so. We require a tech-scanner." Tech-scanner? Those were pretty basic tools. Tresse's ship had four lying around in various parts of the ship. "I know those are very basic tools to have, but all of ours have gone missing and our engineer droids are also malfunctioned."

"Okay, simple enough. My ship can be over to you pretty quick, so we can get you fixed up."

"We thank you a thousand times, Master Riggs."

Tresse waited by the airlock as Corso came, now dressed, though his hair was still wet. Luckily, the smell of the cleaner was replaced by his spicy soap. He had a toolbox in his hand and a scowl on his face.

"Hey, Corso." Tresse grinned, "Sorry about the little awkwardness earlier, but it had to be done."

He shrugged, "I'll be fine. These guys don't have much to repair, just a little hydro-soldering, so it shouldn't take long."

"Okay. Who's the captain of the ship?"

"Some fella named Deradon. Sounded real fancy."

Tresse nodded, flinching, "Yep, thought so. He's a good guy, but you _really_ should keep my name out of this. Probably avoid telling them that I'm a woman, too. In fact, you can pretend to be captain. If you need me, call me, but only do it if you honestly truly have to."

"Gotcha."

"Okay, have fun, Farm Boy."


	5. Chapter 5

"Welcome aboard the Libur, Master Riggs." A silky voice greeted Corso as he stepped out the airlock, "We thank you on behalf of Captain Deradon for coming to our aid."

The speakers were a pair of nearly identical blond men. The man on the left reached his hand out to Corso in a greeting gesture, "I am Kay and this is my brother Celot. We are the aids to Captain Deradon, and we are here to aid you."

Corso blinked, unsure of how to handle them. He wished Tresse were here. She was good at talking to people. "Um, thank you, sirs. It's no problem." He shifted his feet, clutching his toolbox tighter to his chest. The blond twins were disconcerting.

"Follow us to speak with our Captain." In unison, they spun on their heels and lead Corso down the hall. He silently followed them, staring at the ship's décor.

It was rustic, almost like it were a surface dwelling instead of a starship. Wooded paneling lined the walls with gold trims and red tapestries. The floor was matching red carpet that muffled Corso's footsteps. Maybe that's what was making the twins so eerie, the fact that Corso couldn't hear their footsteps.

Finally, they entered what could only be described as a throne room. The room was large- the walls were the same wood, red, and gold- with a handsome chair centered at the front of it. These tapestries were far more ornate, with pictures of warriors fighting beasts and other warriors woven into them. Corso stared at the tapestry, half expecting them to be animated. They were incredible.

"We present you to Duke Deradon, heir to King Finnara of Tolemac."

Corso looked away from the tapestries to see another blond man enter the room. He was different from the aides, though. This man was tall, muscular, and jaunty in the way he walked. His clothes were far more decorated than the aides' simple red tunics. He wore a cape around his shoulders, decorated with intricate geometric patterns that almost spun as he moved. A gold circlet crown was resting above his temples.

Deradon sat down in his throne and looked at Corso. Corso suddenly felt aware of how worn out his own clothes were getting. He hoped he still didn't smell like that blasted cleaner.

"Captain Riggs, our savior." Deradon greeted graciously, "Welcome aboard my humble ship. I wish you could have joined us on better circumstances, however, I am grateful you are here nonetheless." The duke's teeth were perfectly white as he smiled warmly at Corso.

"Uh, no problem. Spacers gotta stick together." Even as he spoke, Corso flinched at how lame his words sounded. Tresse would have been able to say something equally grandiose as Deradon.

But if Deradon was unimpressed, he didn't show it. "Kay, Celot, leave us. I will escort Captain Riggs myself." The twins bowed and silently glided away. "Come with me, Captain."

Deradon hopped off of his throne and guided Corso. His perfume rushed over Corso, but his was a rich, warm smell. If gold had a smell, Corso guessed it would be like Deradon's perfume.

"So, tell me, Captain. What brings you to this side of the galaxy? Odd place for a spacer to be floating around." Deradon's voice was pleasantly conversational although inquisitive.

"My captain was just taking some down time to coordinate her next shipment when we got your signal." He said simply without thinking.

Oh, cripes. He had managed to let it slip that he was not the actual captain and that she was a woman. Before he could try to remedy another explanation, Deradon was hooked.

"A woman captain?" He asked, as though it was the most interesting thing in the world.

"Uh, yeah." Corso drilled himself to do Tresse at least one favor and keep her name out of it.

Deradon studied Corso for a moment continued walking. "How fascinating. On my world of Tolemac, woman aren't allowed to even be on starships, much less captain them. I've always found it interesting to see how other cultures function."

So that's why Tresse didn't want to deal with Deradon, Corso realized. She considered even Corso's chivalry to be sexist and annoying. He couldn't imagine her ire if she had to deal with these guys. "I don't think too much of it, to be honest." Corso answered. "She's a great captain. I'd stick with her to the end of the galaxy."

"Have you ever bedded her?" Deradon asked bluntly.

Corso almost dropped his toolbox, "What? Her? No." Heat rushed up to his face, much like it did when Tresse had barged in on him in the shower.

Deradon laughed at Corso's shock, "I apologize, friend. My curiosity has poor manners." He clapped his hand on Corso's shoulder. "But is she elderly or ugly? Is that why you haven't?"

Corso was about to just turn around and run away, "Stars, no, that isn't why. She's terrific. More than that, really. It just wouldn't be proper, since she is my captain and all. Plus, I'd think she'd shoot me if I tried anything." This conversation needed to end, now.

"I see." Deradon nodded thoughtfully, then turned to a large door. "Here's the engine room." He pushed the door open, and Corso followed, grateful for the change in conversation. "We have no engineers, since our ships have specialized droids for repair. However, due to a recent stream of bad luck, even our droid has malfunctioned. I do hope you can fix it."

Corso nodded. While ship repairs were more of Tresse's thing, he still considered himself to be handy with it. He set the toolbox on the ground and started to look around, scanner in hand. Chances were it was probably just some messed up wire connections. Deradon knelt on the ground beside him and watched intently. It was somewhat nerve wracking having him watch so closely, but Corso tried to ignore him. As long as the Duke wasn't talking about women anymore, he'd be fine.

No sooner than Corso had that thought, Deradon started again. "I knew a woman once who was similar to how you describe your captain. She was wild, the only maiden of all our courts to be so bold. Always getting into trouble. Of course, she was the only daughter of our king Finnara, and I was betrothed to her. I wanted to understand her in hopes that she would understand me. Now I realize that when I tried to tame her, I completely alienated her. She eventually ran away, mere days before our wedding."

Corso shook his head. He really wasn't sure what the proper thing to say was, so he just shrugged sympathetically. Deradon laughed.

"Sorry, it's such a heavy story to share when we've only known each other so briefly. I miss her still, tis all. She loved the stars, so I always search for her when I'm in spaceports."

The scanner started to flash before Corso had to answer, "Looks like I might have found your problem. About the ship, that is." Corso peered into the cramped engine compartment to see for himself what the issue was.

The wiring that connected the engine core to the navi controls was sliced perfectly through. The only way to get a cut that clean was with a laser scissor. On purpose.

"Uh, Duke? It looks like someone purposely cut these wires to stop your ship."

Deradon's eyes widened. "That's preposterous. The only people on board this ship are the twins and I. Kay and Celot would never sabotage us." He was indignant.

"Look for yourself, Duke."

Deradon studied it for a moment, but he still was disbelieving. "This can't be possible." He ran his fingers through his perfect hair, barely mussing it up. Corso stood up. He'd better call Tresse so she could figure things out. She'd know what to do.

Just as he clicked open his comm, the engine room door slid open.

"We apologize, Duke and Captain." The twins stood in the doorway, each pointing blasters at Corso and the Duke. "However, this is a mutiny."

"Mutiny?" Deradon sputtered. "But how? Why?"

The left twin, Celot maybe, shook his head. "We tire of being servants to you, Duke. A recent financial proposition was made to us in regards to our cargo, and we could not decline. You and the Captain are our prisoners until the deal is complete, then it is up to our new partners as to what will be done with you. Now, hands up."

Corso glanced at his comm as he raised his hands, "You mean, you two are holding the Duke and me ransom until somebody comes to pick you up?" He asked, loudly.

The other twin shook his head, "Yes."

"That means we're in _trouble_?"

Kay frowned, "Yes. Do your people have no concept of treachery and ransom?"

"So, we need to be _rescued _somehow? _Soon_?"

Corso heard a whisper of a breath from his comm. He relaxed a tiny bit. Tresse had gotten his message. She'd be there soon enough, he knew it.


	6. Chapter 6

Tresse swore a long stream of cuss words as she flicked off her comm. _Dammit, Farm Boy_. She sends the guy on one simple job, and he gets held for ransom. Why does he always have to make things more complicated every kriffing time? She grabbed her blaster and strapped it to her hip.

So, treacherous Tolemacs? That wasn't anything too new. Anytime there's a culture so focused on making profits, there was bound to be deception and betrayal. That's what credits do to people. However, loyalty to credits wasn't necessarily a bad thing. It made them easy to manipulate. And if there was one thing Tolemacs loved more than credits, it was gold.

Tresse stood in front of her comm console, but turned off the visuals before she made the call. Arms crossed, she waited for them to answer.

Finally, someone did. Two blonde servants answered the call. She could tell they were servants since their hair was tied up in tight topknots.

"Who is this?" They demanded.

"I'm the captain of the bloke you're currently holding for ransom, and I'm calling to get him- and the Duke- back from you."

"How did you know? No matter. Our new business partners have made us a deal we can't possibly pass up."

She shook her head. "Is it worth more than an entire crate of gold?"

They froze. An entire crate of gold? That was certainly worth more than what their new partners were offering. The one on the left shook his head. "How can we trust you if you do not even show your face?"

"Are you willing to pass up such an opportunity just because you can't see me? My face doesn't matter. The gold does. Let me dock my ship with yours so you can see for yourself and we can make a trade." They still hesitated, "C'mon gentlemen. Let's be reasonable. Why would I try to swindle you when you have my crew? I'd like him back just as much as you'd want the gold."

Moments passed before they finally nodded. "Fine. Dock your ship with us. But no weapons. And if you try to deceive us, the deal is off and you, your crew, and the duke are finished."

"I swear by Plutus' Comet I won't try to trick you." That was the highest swear anyone could make on Tolemac. The twins nodded and flicked off the comm.

Tresse sighed as she pulled her blaster out of its holster. It wasn't going to do her much good. Besides, she didn't really need it. She hopped back in the cockpit and set it to hook up with the Libur's second airlock. While the ships locked together, she ran down to the cargo hold to pick up one of her crates. Didn't really matter which one she picked. The hold still stunk of the cleaner, making her cover her nose and she wandered around the crates until she found the perfect one.

Crate loaded onto a hover dolly, she led it to the airlock where she waited for the doors to open. Before the doors opened, though, she picked up her hooded cloak and tossed it over her shoulders and pulled the hood over her head. She still wasn't quite ready to meet them face to face. The chances of the twins recognizing her were little to none, but Deradon was another issue entirely.

The doors whooshed open, the twins there to greet her.

"Captain." They greeted curtly. Their eyes stared greedily at the crate.

"My guy and the Duke, first." She warned them, stepping in front of the crate. They shook their heads and motioned for her to follow them.

The ship was decorated in typical garish Tolemac style. It made her head hurt. The twins lead her to the throne room, where Corso and Deradon sat on the ground with their hands tied. Corso's face lit up when he saw her, and he waved a little, even though his hands were tied together. Tresse waved back. Deradon was on the verge of tears, his crown askew. Her heart lurched to see him, but she kept her face smooth. She crossed her arms and waited.

"Alright," She said, "Let's get this figured out. The quicker, the better." Deradon perked his head up to look at her, his face slightly confused, but she ignored him. One of the twins started to inspect the crate.

"There's something odd about the smell of it." He murmured. Corso's eyes widened as he started to understand what Tresse was trying to pull off, but he stayed silent.

Tresse walked behind the twin as he started to open it. He pulled open the door and a wave of fishy stench rushed out. Thawed slugs slopped out onto the floor. The twin yelped in disgust, but before he could jump back, Tresse jammed her foot behind his knee, making him lose balance on the slick ground. Before he fell, she grabbed the back of his collar and slammed his head into the crate, stunning him.

"Celot!" The other twin cried out and pulled his blaster out. Tresse pushed the crate, still hovering, at the second twin. It knocked into him, but he managed to keep his balance, firing at her. She jumped to the side, avoiding the barrage of shots.

Celot regained his bearings and grabbed Tresse from behind, pulling off her hood.

"Cripes." She yelled, jabbing her elbow into his gut. A blaster bolt landed a lucky shot onto her leg, nearly hitting her knee, but she still managed to push Celot over.

"Captain!" Corso stood up to help her, but Deradon was already on his feet.

He barreled into the twin with the blaster, clobbering him. The twin fired desperately trying to hit something. Deradon grunted but kept his footing. Tresse ran over to him and delivered a flying kick to the twin's head. His head jerked back as he fell over with a squishing sound into the pile of thawed slugs. Deradon started to fall over, but Tresse caught him.

She watched at Corso clubbed Celot in the head with his fisted hands, knocking him out. She turned back to Deradon and lowered him to the ground so she could see where he was shot.

"Oh, Duke." She muttered, shaking her head at him. "How did you manage to get yourself in such trouble?"

Deradon placed his hand on her cheek, looking adoringly up at her. "Tresseme?" He asked as if he couldn't believe it. "After all this time?" He coughed pitifully. "I'm glad that you're here with me in my final moments." His eyes closed and his head sunk back. She rolled her eyes.

"Shush, you big baby. You're only hit in the shoulder. Don't be such a drama duke." Tresse looked up to Corso, who looked profoundly confused. "Stop staring, help me get him out of here."


	7. Chapter 7

Once the Duke was resting in the Sphincter's medical bay, bandaged and sedated, Tresse sat back in her cockpit, her leg wrapped tight in kolto bandages. The Libur was in tow, the twins locked up tight. She tapped in the coordinates for Tolemac.

"So…" Corso had come up behind her. She closed her eyes and sighed, then turned around to face him. He fidgeted uncomfortably. "You wanna talk about what happened back there? With the duke?"

"Nope, not really." She turned back around to look away from him. Corso huffed and sat down in the co-pilot chair. He wasn't letting go.

"You sure? Seems to be something pretty interesting between you two."

"Nope, not really." She said again, suddenly focused on buffing her cracked nails.

"Why did he call you 'Tresseme'?"

Tresse groaned, "Fine. He and I had a thing together a few years back. Tresseme is my full name. It was a long time ago."

Corso arched his brow. He knew something and wasn't going to let it go. However, Tresse was going to make it as difficult for him as she possibly could. "What kind of a thing?"

"A fling thing. Why do you want to know? Jealous?" She felt him flinch at her accusation, which she knew was just petty to make. "Sorry, Farm Boy. Look, it's in the past, I've moved on, I really don't wanna talk about it." She polished some of the dials on the dashboard with the cuff of her shirt to avoid his stare.

"Tresse Finn." He said quietly. "Tresseme Finnara."

She froze, holding her breath.

"_'__The looks of a scoundrel, but the blood of a noble._'" He quoted the gypsy. "Deradon told me how he was engaged to a princess- a wild princess who loved the stars- until she ran away from him."

Tresse crossed her arms and turned away from him.

"Tresse. You're my captain, and I trust you. I'd follow you through Chaos and back without thinking twice. But I need to know who you are. You can't keep pushing me away like this."

She sighed shakily. "Fine. Tresseme Finnara is the name I was born with until I ran away to make a name for myself. You saw how they treat women, Corso? Can you imagine me living a life where I was just to be a pretty doll, stuck in the dirt? I had to run away.

Deradon was the one person who let me be myself. He gave me a speeder bike, which was illegal for women to drive. He taught me business skills and let me help him with his trading. He brought me to space the first time in my life. He let me be who I was meant to be. But it turned out that he was just doing those things to 'tame' me. He thought I would eventually get tired of independence and become the perfect princess bride he wanted.

When I found out, it was the first time I had ever travelled in space. We were docked at a port when I realized what he was doing to me. Once I knew the truth, I couldn't stay. I shaved my head- a symbol of a woman's status- and snuck off his ship. From there, I got a job working on a freighter and eventually, I got my own ship and business. Then I picked you up on Ord Mantell and that's how things have been for me. I live the way I am supposed to. Free to roam the stars as I damn well please."

Corso was quiet as he listened to her. Tresse's voice cracked a couple times as she rushed through the entire story. It was as if she had rehearsed it a thousand times before she told him. When she finished, they sat silently. Corso put his hand on her shoulder.

"Thank you, Captain." He whispered. It felt like a brick wall that had been between them had finally been knocked down.

Tresse smiled a little at him, a tiny grin. "Good to get that off my chest. Now, go make sure the Duke's still out of it. We gotta drop him off at a med center so he can be picked up by another one of his merchants."

"Are you gonna talk to him?" Corso asked, standing up.

She shook her head, "Nah. I'm sure he understands. Like I said, he's a good guy. Just delusional."

"You don't have to answer me," Corso stared at his feet, "But did you love him?"

Tresse sighed again. He looked so pitiful there, waiting her answer. "I used to think I did, but not anymore."

Corso looked relieved, "Ah, I see. I'll go check on him."

Tresse watched Corso leave, relieved how calmly he handled it. She was never sure how he would react, but it made sense to her. He seemed more interested in just having her finally confide in him that her actual past didn't affect his opinion of her. Tresse had always been nervous how he would treat her if he knew who she used to be, but he understood that her past was behind her. That was one of the things she loved about him.

As Corso walked to the Sphincter's little med bay, he thought about how it turned out that the gypsy was right after all about Tresse's nobility. He paused. If the gypsy could tell his and Tresse's past, then what if her predictions about their future and the coming storm were also true? He felt nauseas for a moment but took a deep breath. If they really were supposed to save the galaxy, he knew that he and Tresse would be the best team to do it.

Because who better to save the galaxy than a runaway princess and a lost farm boy?


End file.
